Thursday, July 25, 2019

When duty calls



The other day I was contacted by a subscriber who found a late 1920’s/early 1930’s Royal Australian Airforce watch numbered issue with the owner’s name still on the case back.  The request was for a full service.

Unfortunately the watch was in very poor condition, long past servicing days.  Really a booby trap.  But the subscriber had already contacted Canberra Military Archives and had got in touch with the daughter of the serviceman in an effort to reunite her with her father’s watch.   Clearly, I didn’t have much choice but to do my best.

The repair took the whole afternoon, and eventually I got it up and running.  To my surprise, not only did it survive its first night but, as I type this, it is still keeping reasonably correct time.  In the spirit of reunification, this repair job is going to be pro bono.  Of course, the full credit goes to the subscriber who - like a Good Samaritan - donated his time and the watch.  

Preserving a piece of Australian military history is reward in itself.






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